As the countdown to the Giller Prize ticks along, I’m reading and reviewing as many nominated books as I can. Next up on my list is Marina Endicott’s Close to Hugh. I have a soft spot in my hardened little heart for Endicott. She splits her time between Toronto and Alberta (Edmonton), so she goes…
Anna Benz, the protagonist of Hausfrau (meaning “housewife” in German), is living in Switzerland after moving there with her husband Bruno from the United States. They have three young children, live in a nice home in a respectable neighborhood, and appear to be ‘the perfect family’ from the outside. As you can probably guess by…
An homage to the wonderful world of books! I dare any book lover to read The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend and not fall in love. As you can tell by the title, this novel is about reading for pleasure. So, obviously I thoroughly enjoyed it, and am highly recommending you pick it up. It…
I recently finished reading Elizabeth Hay‘s new book His Whole Life. And I loved it. Obviously, because Elizabeth Hay is great. I’ve also been helping the wonderful Shelley Youngblut program the 20th anniversary of Wordfest this year. So…they filmed me (nervously) reviewing this book as part of the festival preparations. Should I stick to doing…
Ok I am specifically NOT looking at any other reviews of Patrick deWitt‘s Under Major Domo Minor before I post this, because I don’t want anyone else’s opinion to influence mine, or make me second guess myself. Not only did I love this book, but I think it is destined to become a classic, one…
I had never heard of David Constantine before I picked up this book, but after I had quickly scanned his bio on the inside cover of In Another Country, I realized what I was missing. He’s kind of a big deal, being nominated for many different prizes, and according to his Canadian publisher Biblioasis, he…
Ahh the Fall. For book nerds like me, this is a great season for a few reasons; one, the weather is getting colder, so we have better excuses to stay in and read, and two, the Fall is when highly anticipated books are released, just before book award lists are announced. Canadian book lovers will…
When I picked up this book from my shelf, I immediately noticed the seal on the front announcing it had won the “Beacon Award for Social Justice Literature”. Not exactly an exciting call to action, because who wants to read a book about social justice in the dead of summer? But I had promised to…
Saint Mazie by Jami Attenberg is based on the life of Mazie Phillips, an out-spoken, big-hearted woman who lived through The Great Depression, helping those less fortunate in any way she could. Although she is referred to as a ‘celebrity’ in many places, not much is known about her, which is why this book felt…
This is one of the best, if not the best book I have read so far this year. Bold statement I know, but The Incarnations by Susan Barker is worth the praise. So why did I like it? There are so many reasons why, I have to put them in bullet form: It’s got a…
Okay, Lynn Crosbie scares me a bit, and not for the reasons you think. The stuff she writes is a bit strange, always has been, and yet I’m drawn to her work like a cat to an open box (see below). I discovered her back in university during my Canadian Poetry class with the amazing…
I read this book, and then climbed a (very small) mountain with my family. Nothing makes a survival story quite so real until you put yourself in the situation that’s being described in the story you just finished! Luckily, we made it off the trail alive, unscathed, and in very good spirits, but I can’t…
